An easement is an entity’s legal right to use a portion of your property for a specific purpose. In the case of a sewer easement, that means the right to access, service, and make emergency repairs to a wastewater manhole or pipe that runs under your property.

The City maintains 15 miles of wastewater easements. Maintenance of these easements occurs in the spring and summer months and involves inspection of easements in residential areas, road repair, and cutting newly rooted trees, weeds, and grasses. The easement maintenance program enables year-round access to all City of Redmond manholes in the event of an emergency.

You may have a City sewer easement on your property and not know it! If you have a manhole in your backyard, you have a sewer line running under it. If neighbors have a manhole in their yard, there may be a pipe that carries wastewater under your property. Generally, an easement will show up in the title report when you buy your house.

To confirm whether or not there is a wastewater easement on your property, call the Wastewater Division at 425-556-2827. Wastewater staff will explain what is and is not permitted and are happy to review home improvement or landscaping projects that might affect an easement.

It is important that homeowners understand what they may and may not do on their wastewater easement. While a small bird bath or other easily moveable garden furniture is okay, planting sod, covering the access with rocks, retaining walls, decks, or storage is not allowed. Building permanent structures, such as garages, sheds or planting trees on top of any portion of the easement is also not permitted. Easements are not to be used for boat or RV storage. If there is a manhole on your property, you should ensure that there is unobstructed access for wastewater crews.

NOT ACCESSIBLE! This retaining wall must be moved to allow access to the
manhole in case of an emergency like a sanitary sewer overflow.

Wastewater crews will not enter private property without first notifying the homeowner whenever possible. Homeowners are asked to please confine pets prior to the maintenance crew arriving to perform scheduled maintenance tasks.